More about the author 

Mindy McGinnis is an Edgar Award-winning novelist who writes across multiple genres, including post-apocalyptic, historical, thriller, contemporary, mystery, and fantasy.

While her settings may change, you can always count on Mindy’s books to deliver grit, truth, and an unflinching look at humanity and the world around us.

The Initial Insult

(The Initial Insult #1)

by

Mindy McGinnis (Goodreads Author)

3.66  · 

Rating details ·  2,722 ratings  ·  862 reviews 

 

Welcome to Amontillado, Ohio, where your last name is worth more than money, and secrets can be kept… for a price.

Tress Montor knows that her family used to mean something—until she didn’t have a family anymore. When her parents disappeared seven years ago while driving her best friend home, Tress lost everything. She might still be a Montor, but the entire town shuns her now that she lives with her drunken, one-eyed grandfather at what locals refer to as the “White Trash Zoo,” – a wild animal attraction featuring a zebra, a chimpanzee, and a panther, among other things.

Felicity Turnado has it all – looks, money, and a secret that she’s kept hidden. She knows that one misstep could send her tumbling from the top of the social ladder, and she’s worked hard to make everyone forget that she was with the Montors the night they disappeared. Felicity has buried what she knows so deeply that she can’t even remember what it is… only that she can’t look at Tress without having a panic attack.

But she’ll have to.

Tress has a plan. A Halloween costume party at an abandoned house provides the ideal situation for Tress to pry the truth from Felicity – brick by brick – as she slowly seals her former best friend into a coal chute. With a drunken party above them, and a loose panther on the prowl, Tress will have her answers – or settle for revenge.

In the first book of this duology, award-winning author Mindy McGinnis draws inspiration from Edgar Allan Poe and masterfully delivers a dark, propulsive mystery in alternating points of view that unravels a friendship... forevermore. 

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Hardcover, 372 pages

Published February 23rd 2021 by Katherine Tegen Books

 

 

 A short opinion

An interesting story about two teenage girls that used to be best friends but is now divided by place in high school popularity. Have and have not and a dark, dark secret.

I liked the book well enough but I was not crazy about it.

Most readers will disagree with me and fawn over it and that is their prerogative.

I do not feel as if I wasted my time on this book and that in these weird and wonderful times is a major plus.

Not really that much aimed at a YA group but it will get the avid reader of that age a nice and new point of view.

 

Rating ***

Book Review of Dawn of Ra (Blood of Ra Trilogy Prequel) by M Sasinowski

Book Title: Dawn of Ra (Blood of Ra Prequel)

Genre: YA Science Fiction/Thriller

Pages: 396

Author: M. Sasinowski

Date Published: 5 December 2020

Synopsis:

The prequel to the best-selling Blood of Ra Trilogy

Millennia before Alyssa, Paul, and Tasha...

The ancient Rathadi and Pureans live side by side, sharing the island entrusted to their care. When the fragile peace between them is shattered, a young boy, exiled to a distant land, rises to become worshipped as the falcon-headed god.

This is his prophecy. This is his story.

This is how it all began.

Review:

Dawn of Ra by M. Sasinowski
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Heru-Pa, being a Rathadi, is about to go through an important rite where he and his sentinel become one, and he will be given his true name (Horus). Set is destined to reign over the Purean's. However, when the island of Atlantis is attacked by a foe long thought dead, both of them will have to face challenges that would crush anyone, never mind two twelve-year-olds.

Having read the trilogy, I was excited when I heard this book was available to pre-order. I downloaded it as soon as it became available.

I was quickly swept up into the tale. I loved the way the two boys acted, like brothers. I also liked how they grew as the story progressed. I spent most of my time on a rollercoaster of emotion throughout. I cursed the author in my head for it. However, I also thanked him because he brought the characters to life.

It's a stand-alone read, so even if you read the trilogy first, you will not face confusion. However, it explains the history that joins Alyssa's destiny. My only criticism is that I wish it was a little longer and showed Horus as a young man/adult and up until he came face to face with Alyssa. I know it wasn't possible as it spanned millennia. Nevertheless, I loved the journey from beginning to end.

M. Sasinowski is a fantastic author. As Heir of Ra was his first book, I think this author is one to watch. I love his fast-paced writing style. His characters come to life on the page, and I can picture the scenes in my mind's eye with ease. I also love the story flow, which runs smoothly from scene to scene. I've added him to my favourite author's list.

There are scenes of a sexual nature (not explicitly shown) between adult characters, and there is some violence, so I feel that parental guidance may be required. I highly recommend this book (and series) to teens and adults alike who love YA science fiction, fantasy, action, adventure, thrillers, mysteries, mythology, and romance genres. - Lynn Worton

View all my reviews

About The Author:
Taken from Amazon.

About the Author - written from the point-of-view of his 15-year old daughter (that's me! :)

Some say that M. Sasinowski writes until 4 am... fueled by a single cup of decaf coffee. Others say this Polish-born American hyper-nerd absorbs energy from late-night TV space shows. No matter the truth... he's my dad. He will never be cool.

He loves archaeology, Star Wars/Trek, martial arts (especially women who kick butt), and impromptu father/daughter (that's me! :) science debates or music jam-sessions. He's kind of smart, I suppose (he has a physics PhD and an MD, or whatever) and likes to build computers for fun.

His teenage daughter (that's me! :) is occasionally a handful to deal with and also served as the inspiration for the main character in his debut young adult novel Heir of Ra.

You may recognize him from his glorious hair or his tendency to do the "vacuum cleaner" dance to embarrass his daughter (that's me... :(.

If you ever see this man, approach with care and greet him in a language he understands, like in Klingon or, better yet, in Wookie.

Guurrghghgh!

Author Links:

Goodreads

Amazon Author Page

Website

Twitter

                     A YA novel that should be read by all grownups!

It touches on a lot of issues either directly or by implication and dealt with in a very, very good way.  I listend to this via Netgalley and #Winterofthewolf#Netgalley made my day when they granted me this book to listen to.  That I can tell you!

 

4****

 

Winter of the Wolf by Martha Hunt Handler and narrated by Kelly Pruner is the first book I had listened to from start to end via Netgalley.  I lost the first book due to the fact that I could not find the time to listen to it in it's entirety.

This book however had me hooked.  The story is very well told.  The narration is pitch perfect.  The narrator made Bean herself come to life right in front of my minds eye.  Her timing in reading as well as her diction added a lot to the outcome of my enjoyment of the book.

The subject matter, which at first seems cut and dry turns on a dime and left me going --Whoaaa.  What.  Do not get me wrong.  As teenagers we used to play this same game at parties and we were all as stupid as dirt about it.  But somehow I figured this would have died out by now.  After I finished the book I did a bit of light research and were shocked to see kids still playing this very dangerous "game".  

The clincher for me regarding to book is the fact that all proceeds goes towards wildlife.  What more can you possibly want.  

The one negative about the book.  The cover.  I would strongly suggest the author invests in getting a better cover.  But even with this cover, I decided to ask for the book and I was so glad to receive it.  

Here is the Goodreads photo from the author.

Martha Hunt Handler grew up dreaming of wolves and has always understood that her role in this lifetime is to tell stories and be a voice for nature. She has been an environmental consultant, a magazine columnist, an actress, and a polar explorer, among other occupations. When she and her four children relocated from Los Angeles to New York more than twenty years ago she began to literally hear the howls of wolves. This marked the beginning of her work advocating on behalf of wolves at the Wolf Conservation Center (nywolf.org). Winter of the Wolf is Martha's debut novel.

You can learn more about her at https://marthahunthandler.com/ or follow her on facebook at Martha Hunt Handler or on Instagram at @marthahunthandler

Red Sparrow by Jason Matthews (Book one in a trilogy)

 

Red Sparrow

(Red Sparrow Trilogy #1)

by 

Jason Matthews

 3.95  ·   Rating details ·  48,519 ratings  ·  4,279 reviews

In the grand spy-tale tradition of John le Carré comes this shocking thriller written with insider detail known only to a veteran CIA officer.

In present-day Russia, ruled by blue-eyed, unblinking President Vladimir Putin, Russian intelligence officer Dominika Egorova struggles to survive in the post-Soviet intelligence jungle. Ordered against her will to become a “Sparrow,” a trained seductress, Dominika is assigned to operate against Nathaniel Nash, a young CIA officer who handles the Agency’s most important Russian mole.

Spies have long relied on the “honey trap,” whereby vulnerable men and women are intimately compromised. Dominika learns these techniques of “sexpionage” in Russia’s secret “Sparrow School,” hidden outside of Moscow. As the action careens between Russia, Finland, Greece, Italy, and the United States, Dominika and Nate soon collide in a duel of wills, tradecraft, and—inevitably—forbidden passion that threatens not just their lives but those of others as well. As secret allegiances are made and broken, Dominika and Nate’s game reaches a deadly crossroads. Soon one of them begins a dangerous double existence in a life-and-death operation that consumes intelligence agencies from Moscow to Washington, DC.

Page by page, veteran CIA officer Jason Matthews’s Red Sparrow delights and terrifies and fascinates, all while delivering an unforgettable cast, from a sadistic Spetsnaz “mechanic” who carries out Putin’s murderous schemes to the weary CIA Station Chief who resists Washington “cake-eaters” to MARBLE, the priceless Russian mole. Packed with insider detail and written with brio, this tour-de-force novel brims with Matthews’s life experience, including his knowledge of espionage, counterintelligence, surveillance tradecraft, spy recruitment, cyber-warfare, the Russian use of “spy dust,” and covert communications. Brilliantly composed and elegantly constructed, Red Sparrow is a masterful spy tale lifted from the dossiers of intelligence agencies on both sides of the Atlantic. Authentic, tense, and entertaining, this novel introduces Jason Matthews as a major new American talent.

Thank you Goodreads for this amazing book blurb.

Now onto what I think of the story.

Character development;

The prima ballerina is somebody the reader gets to know pretty well.  Her later love interest and the CIA agent that saves her, endangers her life, and in general think she is made out of porcelain is not a bad character but he could have been developed a bit more.

As for the characters that filled the fluff.  Some of them needs serious work.  Still, those who did not was fascinating and I would not mind reading more about them pretty soon.  

Overall 3 *

Pace of story:

The book is not a fast read but it is a compelling read if this is your genre so it reads far faster than you might have imagined at the start.  I liked the pace and I liked the flow.  

Overall 4*

The plot: 

Well now.  This is the one thing most of us can agree upon.  The plot was fascinating.  It has been some time since I last read an East vs West spy novel and this one did not disappoint in the least.  

Overall 4*

The general feel of the book left me with a complete story and I was amazed to find out this is only the first in a trilogy.  The first book ended neat enough for my taste.  

So in all, it is a good but not fast read that can do with a bit of character development but still serves to entertain.  A well deserved 4*.

Ab

About the author thanks to Goodreads

Jason Matthews

Genre

Thriller, Suspense

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Librarian's note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Jason Matthews is a retired officer of the CIA’s Operations Directorate. Over a thirty-three-year career he served in multiple overseas locations and engaged in clandestine collection of national security intelligence, specializing in denied-area operations. Matthews conducted recruitment operations against Soviet–East European, East Asian, Middle Eastern, and Caribbean targets. As Chief in various CIA Stations, he collaborated with foreign partners in counterproliferation and counterterrorism operations. He lives in Southern California.